take notes

Idioms

Also, make notes. Record one's observations or what one hears in order to help recall them later. For example, Jim never takes notes in class and I think he'll regret it, or The decorator made notes of window measurements and other dimensions. [Mid-1500s] Also see take note.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Kaiser already uses AI software to transcribe conversations and take notes between healthcare workers and patients, but therapists have privacy concerns about recording highly sensitive remarks.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 6, 2026

Doctors are already using artificial intelligence to take notes while with patients—but are large language models ready to consult?

From Slate • Jan. 18, 2026

Every five minutes, he and his fellow researchers take notes, singling out one of the group's 10 adult males to follow each day.

From Barron's • Jan. 15, 2026

The interns’ inexperience showed early on: One fellow asked Hirsch how to take notes during the seminars.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 2, 2025

He leaned against the wall opposite the painting and began in a businesslike way to take notes.

From "Chasing Vermeer" by Blue Balliett

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023